And the Lake Will Run Red
by uzumaki rakku
Summary: "It's the promise of a lifetime! To me and to you and to Kakashi-sensei." But now, Kakashi watches in despair and horror as blood stains the water a deep, unending crimson. "To abandon one's duty is not courageous. Beneath the courageous, there is noth—"
1. The Colour of Blood

**A/N: This plot bunny came out of nowhere and bit me. Hard.**

**I seem to like writing fics that begin with a death/near-death scene... Morbid much? -shrugs-**

**Has anyone been seeing a pattern? I have no idea how _that_ happened. Ah well.**

**I've been working for a while on this chapter, and asked several of my friends to critique and poke logic-shaped holes. Thankyous to Bluu Inkblot for giving me her opinion of my 13456137615th draft (That was just an estimate. It is probably very off.), and to Hikanin Shirona for her logic-shaped biscuit cutter, and all my friends who have helped me with this! :D**

**Nowadays my inspiration always strikes in the form of scenes. And after that I have to try my very best to come up with a good skeleton plotline so as to continue the fic... Sigh. So don't be too surprised if you see random fics here and there which start off in the middle of the action. (Maybe I just don't like prologues? Haha... never really tried writing one. Or maybe I'm just lazy. Hmm...)**

**I'm not as happy with this title as I am with Windchime (I seriously loveloveloveloveLOVE that title. ^^) but I guess it'll do for now. I have rather grand plans for this fic, but I can always post my continuation as a sequel, and take my time coming up with a new title. -bangs head- Titles are just... so troublesome...**

**Anyway! Hope you'll like the fic, and don't freak out, the second chapter won't be nearly as depressing. (:**

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"It's impressive that despite not being an Uchiha, you can still use the Sharingan with such proficiency. However, your blood is not like ours, thus you are less suited to use it."

Kakashi grimaced internally. _'Unfortunately, he's right. I tire easily.'_

"Why is the Uchiha clan known as the strongest?" Itachi mused. He closed his eyes, and despite how it should _seem _like an opening for attack, (under _normal_ circumstances and with _normal_ shinobi, it would be, but _nooooooooooo_, this was Uchiha-friggin-Itachi and treating the current situation like something _normal_ would be suicide.) Kakashi felt himself tense. He was going _beyond_ high alert into something that was more like extreme, constant paranoia. "I will let you experience the true power of the Sharingan... our clan's real strength!"

_'Shit!'_

"Both of you under _no_ circumstances are to open your eyes!" He snapped. The panic was evident in his voice, a clear contrast from his normally mild tone. Though startled, Asuma and Kurenai were quick to obey the ex-Anbu captain's command, both squeezing their eyes shut.

Kakashi closed his right eye and stared straight ahead with his Sharingan, hoping it would be enough, hoping it could match up to whatever hellish power the traitor Uchiha had gained...

A _very_ heavy feeling of dread settled in his stomach.

"Listen carefully: do not open your eyes. If you do, that's the end." He instructed grimly, in a flat tone that allowed no protest. "It's most likely that only another Sharingan can counter this."

"Correct – as long as one has the Sharingan, it is possible to resist this Mangekyou Sharingan," Itachi remarked carelessly. "But this is a special ability of my doujutsu: the genjutsu Tsukuyomi. Only another Sharingan user _with the same blood as me_ can hope to counter it!"

_'Sasuke,'_ He realised. _'Crap.'_

Then Itachi opened his eyes, and three things happened in front of Kakashi.

Three very terrible things, which would haunt him for a long time to come.

_One._ A very familiar blonde blur barrelled into Kakashi.

_Two. _Grimly determined blue eyes met Itachi's blood-red ones, a black pinwheel-like shape already formed in each.

_Three._ As Itachi snarled _"Tsukuyomi!"_ despite his surprise, Naruto flicked a kunai towards his own neck.

The world swirled into red.

"In the realm of Tsukuyomi, I control everything... Space, time, even the mass of objects," Itachi's emotionless voice droned. "For the next seventy-two hours, I will continuously stab you with these katanas."

There was no fear in Naruto's eyes as the sword plunged into his gut.

As Kakashi made a mad lunge for the boy, the kunai pierced his throat with deadly accuracy and buried itself up to the handle in Naruto's neck.

"Fifty-two hours, thirteen minutes and ten sec—"

The crimson world jerked violently, shattering, and Itachi felt himself flung out of the genjutsu. He ignored the blood that trailed from his eyes and struggled to get over his disorientation.

There was no way to break his Tsukuyomi. Not a single person had ever, ever managed to dispel his strongest – _the strongest_ – genjutsu.

His head spun. _Just _what_ did the Kyuubi boy do?_

Blood sprayed.

Both of Kakashi's eyes were stretched wide in horror.

He scarcely noticed Itachi mutter something to a puzzled Kisame. The other two jounin exclaimed in surprise, asking what in the _world_ just happened; Asuma's hands were balled into tense fists, and Kurenai had bitten through the skin of her lip to stop herself from opening her eyes. They were worried, anxious, fearful.

But Kakashi did not care. Not when his student was _dyingdying_dead and _it was all his fault._

_(Again.)_

Obito's eye burned. _(for it was never his, it was Obito's as it was Obito who died to save him, Obito whom he failed and Obito who would never have failed Naruto.)_

He barely caught the falling boy.

Naruto struggled to speak, but his vocal cords had been cut clean through along with his windpipe and the damned _jugular_, and nothing but more blood made its way out of his mouth. Kakashi's flak jacket was stained scarlet as he _shoved_ his chakra into one of the few medical ninjutsus he knew, but Naruto was not healing – _why wasn't he healing?_

He knew it was a fatal wound. But – Was Kyuubi's chakra not enough to heal him? Was Kakashi's medical jutsu and Naruto's own regenerative abilities not enough to save him? The boy was able to bounce back from _everything_. Or so Kakashi had thought, and he prayed, _let this not be an exception..._

_Maybe he's a Kage Bunshin,_ his mind rambled distractedly. _Maybe he's just a Kage Bunshin and the real Naruto hid himself somewhere else. Naruto tends to jump into stuff but he'd never do something like _this_ just to save me from Itachi, right?_

It was uncharacteristic of him to give in to panic and desperation, especially in the middle of a battle. But...

_Come on... it has to be a Kage Bunshin. There's no way Naruto would kill himself, no way he would _die_..._

...even the famous and infamous Copy Ninja was only human.

_But Kage Bunshin don't bleed. Humans do. Kage Bunshin disappear when hit. Humans get injured, and humans die..._

He knelt there on the blue-turning-red water, a dying student in his arms, his failure to protect his comrades crushing his shoulders, and horror-fury-grief shaking him – keep _still!_ He _must not_ injure the boy any further—

A hand tugged weakly on his sleeve, and he tore his eyes away from Naruto's frowning face and pained eyes to see his hands slowly forming hand-signs.

_"Sorry... Don't panic I'm okay... This... not... what you..." _The corners of the boy's mouth twitched upwards weakly, trying to reassure his distraught sensei.

Obito's eye was crying. _(Because Kakashi had no right to when he had _failed_, yet Obito was still willing to cry for him.)_

His Sharingan spun furiously as it etched the disjointed message into his memory, reflecting the colour of blood and—

_(Oh, Kami – all that **blood...)**_

His eye and Itachi's eyes, his (green) jacket and Naruto's (orange) jacket, his (pale) hands and his (silver) hair and his (dark blue) mask... they were all one colour.

The colour of blood, the colour of _death_.

_(And then he realised – black is for mourning, and red is for _dying._)_

He sensed movement, head snapping up on instinct—

—And this time there was no one to save him _(even though he shouldn't be saved, shouldn't because he was not worth it and never had been) _as he was dragged into another Tsukuyomi, as he was pulled away from reality and failure and Naruto and his student's death...

But Itachi was significantly weakened when Tsukuyomi was forcibly broken _(when __brave, reckless __Naruto killed himself)_, and Kakashi could tell – the Uchiha's bleeding red eyes held less menace than before, unwillingly showing bewilderment and discomfort.

Kakashi barely registered the pain as Itachi stabbed him, even as a ragged _"Guuaargh!"_ tore its way out of his mouth. _(It tore out of his throat, like the knife tore Naruto's.)_

He refused to make any sound after that, and showed no acknowledgement of pain, focussing on _hate_ and _fury_ and he realised that _he really wanted to **kill** Uchiha Itachi._

In an act of fierce defiance _(it would have made Naruto proud)_, Kakashi forced his body to move and stabbed a kunai – the same kunai that had **killed **his student – forward blindly. It felt like he was trying to move something from far, far away, trying to connect to something that was not there... He almost expected nothing to happen, as Tsukuyomi was supposed to prevent the victim from moving and attacking anymore.

Itachi coughed violently, spitting out a mouthful of blood. The genjutsu realm shuddered.

_But it did not break._

And then that _bastard_ finally caught on to something. The traitorous Uchiha made him relive the exact moment of his student's sacrifice instead.

This time, he screamed. He yelled in fury and grief and denial, because there was just too much blood, too much dying, too much **sacrifice** and too much that were _his_ fault.

Something broke. Maybe it was him.

He remembered finding his father in the study, broken and bleeding to death over the tatami mats _("I'm sorry, Kakashi.")_, Obito crushed under that rock _("I don't care what the village says, 'cause you're a great ninja, Kakashi...")_, Obito giving him his Sharingan _("Sorry... From now on, I will become your eye and see the future for you.")_, Sensei falling as his soul was taken _("Sorry, Kakashi... Take care of yourself and look out for Naruto for me, okay?")_ and Naruto trying to smile one last smile at him even as blood poured and poured out of his neck...

_("Sorry...")_

_Why were they apologising? _He_ was the one who should be sorry, and _he_ was the one who should not have **lived**—_

And for the first time in Hatake Kakashi's life, he truly wished for death.

_For he had failed._

* * *

Itachi was forced to deactivate his Mangekyou Sharingan and release Tsukuyomi _before_ the three illusion-days were over, weakened as he was. He threw his best genjutsus at Kakashi with his normal Sharingan, one after another, but the Copy-nin tore through them like paper.

"We're getting out of here, Kisame," he grunted, shaken.

He stumbled back unsteadily as Kakashi lunged forward with a Raikiri, murder in his eyes. Kisame grabbed Itachi's arm, and with a few hand-seals and a splash of water they were both gone.

None of them realised that through all of his attacks, Kakashi had not once let go of the boy with bloodstained blond hair and glazed blue eyes.

Panting heavily, Kakashi collapsed onto the water surface. The last thing his mind registered was the body of his dead student slipping out of his arms, sliding out from his slackened grip and slowly sinking into the lake. He tried to grab the boy's jacket, but he could not lift his arm... it was too heavy, and he could not move...

His mind slipped away into unconsciousness, where nothing but pain, guilt and loss awaited him.

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**So... was it good? I'll try to get the next chapter up by tomorrow. There's a bunch of stuff I want to clean up and being the perfectionist I am, I will ****_not _****let bad ficwork get away! (:**

**Do leave a review? (:**

**~rakku**


	2. Tsukuyomi, Tsunade, a Bet, and Rasengan

**A/N: Enjoy the second chapter. Like I promised, it won't be as depressing.**

**Hopefully.**

**(Heh, for an un-emo person, I sure write a lot of depressing scenes. Ah well...)**

**Presenting... chapter 2!**

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Gai pulled the sinking Kakashi out of the water with a confused, worried frown. Kurenai, who could not stand it anymore, opened her eyes and gasped; Asuma immediately did the same. He stared. _'What in the world happened here?' _Kurenai bit her lip, grimacing as she tasted the blood from earlier. _'We were practically useless against Uchiha Itachi... Though it seems like Kakashi-san drove them off. But how? And... the lake..."_

He hefted the unconscious jounin effortlessly onto one shoulder while Asuma and Kurenai informed him of the barely finished battle. As the grim-faced group silently left the lake, making their way to the hospital – whatever had happened to Kakashi looked _bad_ and Asuma and a nasty cut on his shoulder – the same thing weighed on all three still-conscious jounins' minds: _Where had all that blood come from?_

Ripples spread and disappeared, and then the lake was calm once more. The only sign of battle which remained was the scarlet-stained water which lay with a deathly stillness...

* * *

Eleven days later, a small, orange-clad body disappeared from the bottom of the lake with a muffled _poof._

In small clearing many kilometres away from Konoha, Uzumaki Naruto bolted awake, eyes wide. As he made sense of the information that had just _crashed_ into his mind, he paled.

Oh gods, _no._

He was a fool. _(A fool and an idiot and just so damn **stupid!)**_

And he had just screwed up.

Very, very badly.

Naruto swore. _'I had _no_ friggin' idea something like **that** would happen. Damn you to hell, Uchiha Itachi...'_ He channelled chakra into his right hand and slowly formed it into a sphere, muttering distractedly to himself.

"Sasuke didn't say anything about the havoc his brother wreaked." He snorted. "'Course he didn't. He was way too focused on trying to kill his brother – and he failed, anyway. But I _did_ ask him if things were all right in the village... and surely he would have known?'

Naruto scowled at his hand. "Damage's already been done, though. All thanks to **me.** Why, oh _WHY_ did I think it was a good idea to use _that_? I haven't quite gotten the hang of using it, either." He grit his teeth, trying to swallow the lump in his throat.

_'And now Kakashi...'_

He tried to focus on the orb of chakra in his hand. _'From what happened to Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei... is probably in a coma too. He did get away, right...? He has to be all right. Yeah. He has to.'_ The guilt made him wince. He was just so damned _stupid_ sometimes...

His chakra whirled in the sphere furiously, glowing a faint blue which threw small, dancing shadows about his face. It was probably around the middle of the night, as he had fallen asleep earlier while taking a short break from training. He had no care for the time, though.

Naruto continued to stare in fascination at the Rasengan, as if it held all the answers in the world...

_Huh._ And it just might.

Tsukuyomi. Tsunade. Bet.

_Rasengan._

There was only one way to do it then. His eyes filled with a grim determination as he slammed the imperfect Rasengan into a nearby tree.

"I can't take any risks. I have to master this thing," he vowed firmly. "I have to be able to do this quickly, easily, and only using one hand. Like how Ero-Sennin does it. _Like how the Yondaime did._ It's the only way to completely ensure the old lady keeps to her bet. And..."

He raised his head and glared at the moon with fierce defiance and will. "I need this jutsu if I'm ever going to become stronger – strong enough that I can hold my own against people like Uchiha Itachi in the future, and strong enough to **protect the people who are precious to me!"**

His sensei had been devastated. He would never let it happen again. Never.

He formed another Rasengan.

_You better be okay, Kakashi-sensei..._

* * *

He was dying. It hurt to breathe. He hated it.

And it was all because he was _stupid_ again, because in the high of his vicious and victorious glee at finally mastering – _finally! – _Rasengan he was careless, and Kabuto managed to get in a killing blow.

Why was he always so damned _stupid?_

He had no energy left to fume at himself, but he still did.

He could not breathe. He was going to die, really die this time and then _what?_ He was no blood clone. And if he _died_ he would not be there to make sure the old lady kept her promise, he would not be there to make sure Kakashi and Sasuke would be okay, and...

_He still had to apologise to Kakashi-sensei, dammit!_

_'I don't want to die. I don't want to die. Idon'twanttodieIdon'twant...'_

What the hell was the bastard fox doing? Why did it not help him? Did Kyuubi not want to _live?_

Bitterly, he realised that he had been taking his regenerative abilities for granted. He became used to healing fast, used to taking a few hits and getting up again in no time, used to being careless.

_Idiot._

But now he was dying and _what could he do?_

He did not want to die. He still had to help Kakashi.

**_'I DON'T WANT TO DIE!'_**

Something stirred.

He vaguely noticed something red in the blurriness – the fox? – and... there was something green, and as he reached out and _pulled_ on all the strength he had left, he found something blue as well.

And then he could _breathe_ again, as sweet, cooling air rushed into his lungs, and _he was alive._

He couldn't help it. The relief was overwhelming. Savouring the simple joy he felt from just being _alive_, he grinned.

He forced his arm to move, ignoring the stinging pain – _ouch!_ – from the kunai wound. _Remember the bet! The bet was the most important thing._

"Thanks... obaachan..." he cracked open an eye and grinned at her, his hand firmly grasping Tsunade's necklace.

"I won... the bet..."

Smiling sleepily, he let himself drift off.

_Everything's gonna be okay. Yeah. Good..._

* * *

Tsunade could see genuine, frantic worry in the boy's eyes as he urged her to heal Kakashi, barely paying attention to the expressionless Uchiha sitting stiffly in the hospital bed once it was confirmed that the other boy was out of his coma. She could not help but wonder... just _what_ had made him so desperate to get back to Konoha as fast as possible, and _why_ was he so anxious that she kept her promise?

* * *

Naruto grimaced.

The guilt was smothering. He had not meant to scare Kakashi-sensei like that, and he was pretty damn sure his teacher believed him to be dead. _Stupidstupidstupid Naruto, why couldn't you have left a normal Kage Bunshin instead of a blood-leaf one that could actually _**die **_realistically..._

_(Who _cares _about all that improved quality and period of existence crap!)_

Once Gai had half-dragged Tsunade off to help Lee, Naruto stepped out from behind the curtains and observed his teacher warily. Kakashi was pale, his eye was blank and hollow and Naruto was so damn _worried_ he did the first thing that came to mind. _(Which was probably very stupid.)_

He pounced on the man and hugged him tightly.

_(Of course it was very _very_ stupid.)_

"Kakashi-sensei! Gosh I'm so sorry are you alright you look terrible and I'm really so sorry and please be okay I didn't mean to I'm sorry it looked so damn real and – Sensei? Oi!" Naruto began to panic. " – Kakashi-sensei! Calm down, it's me! Can you hear me? _Sensei!_"

The jounin was frozen in shock.

"Kakashi-sensei, _calm down!_"

He was not breathing.

Naruto swore.

Shaking the jounin hard, he tried to get the man to relax and _just get some damn oxygen_.

"It's me, sensei! I'm okay – really, I am – please calm down and just stop hurting yourself okay? I'm really _fine_ and I'm really really really so sorry 'cause I shouldn't have left that blood clone in the village but I got worried and I had no idea something like _that_ would happen – but it's just an overly-realistic clone and _I'm not dead, do you hear me?_ I'm fine. I'm not dead. I'm fine."

Naruto acted on impulse again, punching the man in the arm. He pulled up Kakashi's hitai-ate, and froze.

"Wha – ?"He stared at the strange shape that had formed in the scarlet eye, replacing the previous circle of three tomoe. It looked like... a three-bladed shuriken, he supposed, though it also vaguely resembled a pinwheel. He pushed his bewilderment aside – there were other, _much_ more important things to deal with at the moment.

Naruto gripped Kakashi's shoulder firmly, and glared fiercely into both his eyes.

_"It's okay, I'm okay and you're okay, everything's alright now..."_ he murmured.

The Sharingan began to spin, and Kakashi sucked in a deep gulp of air. The other eye focussed on him dazedly, and he hoped it was a spark of recognition he saw in the distracted, cloudy black-grey.

Naruto sagged in relief, even as the jounin's eyes closed and he passed out from exhaustion.

At least he was breathing evenly.

He gently shifted Kakashi into the centre of the bed, as they had come dangerously close to falling off while Naruto tried to snap him out of his shock. Pulling the blanket over him, the boy sighed. Somehow, he felt it would not be a very good idea to leave his teacher alone. Pulling up a chair, he tried to make himself comfortable, and pondered over the recent events.

Which would be better described as the recent state of chaos, really.

He sighed. _'Nothing every goes right... nope, not even when I try to help.' _A corner of his mouth twitched slightly and gave way to a crooked grin. _'Especially when I try to help.'_

There was also the issue of Kakashi's new Sharingan. Whatever it was, it reminded him of what Itachi's eyes looked like when... He winced. _When all hell broke loose,_ he thought wryly. It looked more... intricate than Itachi's, in a way. Naruto's brow furrowed in confusion. _'What did he call it? Mangekyou Sharingan? It's supposed to be some powerful new level of Sharingan, or something like that. Is Kakashi's the same? Similar?'_ He had absolutely no idea.

Naruto sighed heavily again. He would have to wait for his teacher to wake up before he would get any answers.

Tsunade reappeared with a worried frown, but relaxed a little when she saw that whatever disturbance that took place earlier was over, and both Kakashi and Naruto looked relatively fine. She opened her mouth to ask a question, but the blond shook his head. She nodded, and moved over silently to heal the slight bruise on Kakashi's right arm, raising an eyebrow at Naruto's momentarily mortified face.

The boy shot her a sheepish look. _'I'll tell you later.'_

She nodded again, having somehow understood.

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**Hope you people are happy now (: I didn't kill Naruto! (:**

**How was it? Hope you liked it (: It kind of jumps around everywhere, so I'm not sure if it was too... fragmented? Or too confusing? :/**

**Hmm, shall I continue this? I can easily make it a prequel-ish thingy to In the Right and Wrong Places at the Right Times (GOSH but typing all that out is really troublesome...)**

**Thank you to everyone who review, faved and storyalert-ed this fic!**

**I'm a very inspiration-driven writer so I'm not sure when the next chapter'll be up, but... haha. Hope it's soon. I wonder if I still need to clear any stuff up in the next chapter...**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Have a nice weekend!**

**~rakku (:**


	3. The First Promise

**AN: YAY FINALLY CHAPTER THREE 8D**

**Hope you'll like it! ^^**

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Kakashi awoke abruptly.

The afternoon sun cheerfully jabbed him in both eyes and he immediately closed them again, turning slightly to the left. Keeping his Sharingan eye shut this time – the sudden light and chakra drain made him rather dazed – he opened his right eye, and blinked.

Naruto was snoozing softly in a chair next to his bed.

He inhaled deeply and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

His student was _alive._

Kakashi watched in amused anticipation as the blond head began to slip forward bit by bit, until it finally slid off the chair's back and suddenly nodded forward.

Naruto's head stopped about five inches from his pillow. The boy's surprised exclamation was cut off halfway as blue eyes stared straight into dark grey.

Blink.

The chair leaned backwards at a rather precarious angle as Naruto shot back up. Rubbing at the back of his rather stiff and sore neck, he smiled sheepishly at Kakashi.

"Um... Hi?"

"..."

"You're finally awake," Naruto breathed, relief evident on his face. "Er..." he trailed off, looking hesitant.

"...Are you okay?"

It was a surprisingly difficult-to-answer question.

The silence between them was becoming awkward. Naruto squirmed uncomfortably and avoided Kakashi's unreadable gaze, scrabbling frantically in his mind for a distraction.

"Oh! – I should probably check on Sasuke. There was a run-in with Uchiha Itachi, and he got Tsukuyomi-ed," he explained, and added hurriedly, "He's alright now, I think. Kage Bunshin!" A second Naruto left the room, and there was silence once again.

He grimaced. _'Come on, Kakashi-sensei, say something say something saysomethingalready – GAH! I'm going to go mad at this rate...'_

"You tied your hitai-ate around your neck," Kakashi said suddenly.

Naruto froze for a moment and blinked at him, startled, then stared at the floor.

"Um, yeah. I did."

"..."

"I'm sorry!" he blurted out.

Kakashi sighed. "Do explain, please..." His voice sounded strained.

"I was stupid," Naruto muttered bitterly. "I've been trying to modify Kage Bunshin into something that'd last longer 'cause it's real inconvenient sometimes when they dispel after one hit, y'know? And I managed to create this blood clone thing. It's like... well, it's actually made of a lot of chakra and leaves and blood. It can last for super long but it's still a really really sucky jutsu 'cause it's got all these stupid flaws, as well as the stupidly huge chakra drain and – "

"So it wasn't actually you on that lake."

"Um, yeah. Kind of."

"You – your clone – _died_, Naruto."

He winced again, shoulders dropping miserably. "I'm really so sorry..."

"_Why_ were you there in the first place?"

"Oh um – I happened to be looking around and got curious when I found you three fighting two weird guys and I was worried so I hid and watched. I left a clone in the village 'cause everything's been so hectic after the invasion, yet Ero-sennin – you know, the Jiraiya guy – wanted to drag me off on some mission to find Tsunade-obaachan – she's the one who healed you earlier and – "

"Naruto, talk slower."

He looked sheepish. "Sorry..." At Kakashi's nod, he continued, "I thought I should help with stuff in the village too, so I used the Akai Bunshin."

_'What a fitting name,'_ Kakashi thought grimly, and pushed the image of a bloodstained jacket out of his mind.

"I had to gather enough blood in a container, soak leaves in them, and then use chakra like I'm forming a Kage Bunshin. The blood and leaves are both linked to living beings, so they help to make the clone more... real, I guess." He half-shrugged.

"Does an Akai Bunshin possess the same qualities as your usual Kage Bunshin?"

"Uh... Appearance, personality and stuff, you mean? Yeah – and I also received the memories of that clone after it dispelled." He frowned slightly. "Apparently, that clone will last until every bit of chakra in it is gone, and it won't dispel even if it is, um, you know... killed."

Naruto watched his teacher carefully. Was he treading on sensitive ground again? Kakashi had been really, really upset – understatement of the year – when he had supposedly died...

The jounin closed his eyes, then opened them again, staring straight at him.

"So. That means even if you were there personally, _you would have done the same?_"

"..." He grit his teeth and looked down. _'Damn it. He's not going to like the answer.'_

"_Well?_" Kakashi pressed, his tone laced with a strange anger.

Naruto's head snapped up, blue eyes fierce in their defiant glare.

"_Yes_. I would."

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_"Why the fucking hell would you be so ready to throw your life away?"_

The boy's defiance seemed to crumble at Kakashi furious snarl.

"If it was me at that point of time, I would still jump in to help you. There's no way in hell I'd just _stand by and watch_ when _you're_ in danger of getting killed!" He scowled, still quite fierce.

"Though... if I face such a situation again, I probably won't do exactly what I did..." Naruto paused, then added hurriedly, "And I'll definitely try _not_ to die."

"...Naruto." Kakashi spoke, abrupt. "Promise me you will _not_ do something like that ever again." His single grey eye looked pained.

_"Please."_

Naruto cringed. He was sure Kakashi never pleaded. _Never._

_'I... I really hurt him, didn't I...'_

"I promise," he whispered, trying to fight the stinging in his eyes, refusing to let the sudden tears spill.

Aside from that night when he learnt of the Kyuubi in him and Iruka defended him from Mizuki, he had not cried since he was five, _dammit!_

"Promise me you won't die before I do," Kakashi continued hollowly. "Promise me you won't die _for_ me either."

Naruto opened his mouth to protest, but it stuck in his throat. "I..."

"Sensei... I..."

There was a growing horror in Kakashi's eye as he hesitated, at a loss for words.

"Promise me."

_'Kakashi-sensei, I really...'_

"...I _can't._"

The man gave a single shudder, eye wide in disbelief.

"I can't promise you something like that, sensei, but I _swear_ I'll try my best and become stronger and stop being such an idiot and stop doing stupid things like that and just – _I'm really really so sorry!"_

Naruto gripped his hair with shaking hands, eyes imploring and desperate.

Kakashi sighed quietly.

"...All right."

The boy immediately relaxed, breaking into a huge, relieved smile, and was about to exclaim something before—

He froze suddenly, smile slipping off his face. There was the strangest look in his eyes as he said, slowly, "Ah, I was just wondering... can the Sharingan distinguish between Kage Bunshin and the original person?"

He stopped, re-ran the sentence in his head, and mentally kicked himself. _'Wrong thing to say, idiot...'_

"No, it can_not_." Kakashi's reply was deliberately calm.

"I see. That means we have a _biiit_ of a problem."

He raised a silver eyebrow.

Naruto grinned widely, but his eyes were open and they blazed a _furious_ blue.

"Because, you see, Sasuke just used Chidori on me..." his expression twisted into a snarl as he jabbed his thumb at his jacket.

"...Right _here._"

Naruto was pointing directly at his heart.

* * *

A bird tapped at the window. Kakashi was distracted for a moment, and when he turned his head back, the boy was already gone.

_'Damn it...'_

But he had a mission to do, and he could only hope that nothing too disastrous would happen while he was out of the village.

_'As Naruto would say, this _sucks._'_

* * *

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**Ehehehe... the angst just keeps coming -bangs head- This fic... just has too much legitimate angst potential. XD**

**Romance will come. Not yet, but it will eventually. :D**

**Drop a review? ^^ Thankyouuu~!**

**~rakku(:**


	4. What Really Matters

**HELLO EVERYONE! ^_^**

**And here comes chapter 4, after a rather long hiatus, for which I do apologize...**

**If it helps, chapter 5 will be up quite soon too, because what was originally supposed to be one chapter grew and grew and grew into a huuuuuuuge monster which was well on its way to hitting 3K – so here's one chunk first. (: **

**I'm still working on chapter 5... mainly scene transitions and polishing up and stuff.**

**Don't worry about me ever abandoning this fic, it's my pet project and I have many plans for its future... ^^**

**I hope you'll like this chapter (:**

**Also, Merry belated Christmas, Happy Boxing Day, and Happy New Year in advance! :D**

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* * *

He read through the mission scroll quickly, and sighed.

"Can this be delayed?"

Tsunade raised her eyebrows. "Not with the current manpower shortage. I'm not exactly happy to send you out when you've only just been healed, but this one has been postponed long enough already and you're the most capable Jounin available." She leant her head on one hand, looking him over with the eye of a professional medic. "You aren't in top shape, but I've fixed you up enough so I'm quite sure you'll survive."

"There's... a problem within my team," Kakashi said quietly. "And I need to see to it immediately. One day, perhaps?" he ventured, knowing she had a soft spot for Naruto.

The Godaime frowned. "...A few hours, at most," she finally relented. "Be out of here by evening. Dismissed."

"Hai." Kakashi bowed shortly and left with a quick Shunshin.

There were several people he needed to speak to.

* * *

Gai was quite easy to find, thankfully. Kakashi had intended to ask Jiraiya about the second Itachi and Kisame confrontation, at first, but the sage was out of the village.

There was not much the other Jounin could tell him as he had only arrived on the scene rather late, but apparently the cause of the run-in was a simple case of _bad luck_. Naruto had been training inside his hotel room, accidentally released too much chakra... and thus attracted the attention of the two missing-nin who happened to be passing through the area.

_'It must have been a shock to see an alive Naruto,'_ Kakashi thought wryly. _'Well. At least they didn't manage to capture him.'_

Sasuke's appearance at the same place, however, was not by chance. He had chased after Itachi after Aoba blurted out the news to the whole hospital room.

_'Idiots. _Both_ of them.'_

He nodded his thanks to Gai and left to look for Sakura. Knowing her, she had probably been there when Naruto's Kage Bunshin went to visit Sasuke.

...And knowing the two boys, whatever she had to tell was definitely going to be very troubling.

* * *

"I... I really don't know what was wrong with Sasuke-kun, but he just seemed so _angry_ at Naruto – but they haven't even seen each other for weeks, and Naruto didn't even do anything to provoke him... And then Sasuke-kun just started attacking him in the hospital room – !"

Kakashi really, _really_ wanted to groan at the whole mess of a situation. Instead, he patted the distraught girl on the shoulder awkwardly, and waited for her to calm down.

"What did Naruto do?" He asked quietly.

"He... he seemed confused, and tried to stop Sasuke-kun, and then he got really mad too and started yelling about how he _didn't_ want to fight Sasuke-kun, and..." She bit her lip. "I thought he was dead, but then he just... disappeared, into smoke... so he was a Kage Bunshin."

"Sensei... why is Sasuke-kun acting this way?" Sakura stared at him imploringly. "Is it because of... that seal on his neck?"

"No." His reply was flat. "I sealed that thing myself, so it can't have any effect on him unless he willingly draws on it."

There was a brief silence.

"I filed a report," Sakura began hesitantly. "Of what happened."

Kakashi glanced at her, slightly surprised. "I see."

"Um, was it the right thing to do?"

"It's best that there is a proper account of this incident, so there won't be any... ambiguity," he replied simply.

She nodded, and still looked miserable. Kakashi sighed.

"I'll deal with Sasuke," he spoke briskly. "Don't worry too much. Hopefully everything'll go back to normal soon."

He gave her a brief smile, and tried to be as reassuring as he could.

_This is turning into one giant headache._

* * *

"What were you _thinking?"_ Kakashi asked, grim and angry, yet unnaturally calm.

Sasuke glared, struggling against the wires. "What is the meaning of this?" he hissed.

"If I didn't do this you'd run off," The man replied nonchalantly. "You aren't the type to sit still and hear me lecture."

The boy scoffed.

"So. _What were you thinking?"_

"What are you talking about?" he snarled back, insolent.

Kakashi's right hand flashed once with blindingly white electricity. He smiled brightly.

"That."

The boy glowered at him, trying to hide the sudden terror he had felt.

"Hn. It was just another one of his stupid clones. _Coward."_

There was no sudden spike of _sakki_ that always indicated anger from a shinobi, as Kakashi merely narrowed his eye.

And yet the air itself seemed to freeze.

"You didn't know that until you killed him, did you?" Kakashi asked, a dangerous, deceptive lightness in his voice.

* * *

Naruto stared at the ceiling, fidgeted, turned on his side and stared at the wall, fidgeted, turned on his _other_ side and stared at the _other_ wall, then fidgeted some more.

He couldn't _sleep,_ dammit!

There was just one question crashing around his mind, tearing through any semblance of peace and self-control he tried to maintain.

_Kinda like how Sasuke tears through stuff with that goddamed Chidori—_

He snorted at the analogy.

Shifting again in frustration, his gaze landed on his team photo.

He felt inexplicably angry – furious, even. There was a mad urge to claw at something, to kick and punch and pummel _right into the ground_ and shout that one question of _Why?_

A headache was building, relentless even as he rubbed crossly at it, trying to relax with no success. His forehead felt strangely hot, and there seemed to be an oppressive heat bearing down on him, never mind the fact that the window was open to the cool night air.

He struggled violently against nothing, only to end up horribly tangled in his thin blanket.

"URGH!"

Kicking away the twisted bedsheets, he stomped out of bed and changed into his usual clothing.

_Might as well go and cool my head off somewhere or I'd end up like that bastard._

He shivered a little as he pulled on a black t-shirt, which was weird because he rarely – if at _all_ – felt cold. He tied his hitai-ate loosely around his neck, then paused. Pressing cool fingers against his throat, he closed his eyes for a moment and remembered the feel of metal, cold and hard and deadly _sharp—_

Frowning, Naruto stuffed his arms into the sleeves of his jacket and zipped it all the way up, which felt a little better.

* * *

Sasuke stared forward in stony silence.

"Hmm... You used lethal force against a fellow shinobi of Konoha," Kakashi noted mildly. "You _know_ Chidori is never meant to be used on your comrades—"

"He's a weak coward," the boy snapped. "I told him to fight me and he _refused_. Tch. And he doesn't even have the guts to face me in person."

Despite his derision, there was still that bit of anger and jealousy which smouldered in his eyes.

Kakashi sighed. _'Superiority complex, inferiority complex. And with that sheer arrogance and hate...'_

"Sasuke. Quit seeking revenge."

He spoke bluntly, tone suddenly serious again. "In this line of work, I've seen a lot of things. I've _seen_ how bad people like you can get." He carefully observed the boy, noting the disbelieving narrowing of eyes and the tension in his shoulders.

"In the end, people who tasted revenge weren't satisfied with what they got. It ended in tragedy," he added quietly, hoping it would sway the fuming Uchiha.

_'I don't think he understands,'_ Kakashi thought grimly. _'He can't see anything other than that _goal_ of his, and he doesn't want to, either.'_

"You're only going to hurt and suffer more. And even if you _are_ successful in your revenge, all you'll be left with... is emptiness."

—The concept of _emptiness_ was probably difficult for someone like Sasuke to understand, he realised with a wry grimace. It was something he himself had been forced to comprehend after his father's death – because what was the value and _worth_ of one's own beliefs and morals when they could be so easily trampled on and heartlessly condemned by everyone else, in the face of the _rules? _Every shinobi rule existed for a very good reason and Kakashi had felt _lost_ when he saw how powerless he was against them – how powerless his own father had been.

_(It didn't make _sense,_ because Hatake Sakumo had been a great shinobi, right? His father had made the right choices, hadn't he? —Then why was he still _**wrong?**_)_

In that blank emptiness he had floundered for something to place his trust in, to believe in and to follow, something he would not fail and would in turn never fail him either. His father had failed, because he chose to be human and follow his emotions, his own sense of right and wrong. Perhaps the rules would not let him down.

And so he had dutifully followed every rule and he had tried, very hard, to be the model shinobi. Until Obito came along, with his infuriating tardiness and his idealistic beliefs and just – everything completely opposite to himself. His first ever friend then _died for him_ and showed him that _comrades were important and you're supposed to protect them, _dammit.

Obito had saved him from being crushed to death, and saved him from that _void_ he didn't even realise he was trapped in.

Kakashi exhaled heavily, pulling himself out of the never-ending memories, and asked quietly, "What are you trying to attain from attacking him, Sasuke? He isn't Itachi."

Sasuke stared at him with an emotion which was somewhere between shock at hearing that name, and an endless, burning fury. "Naruto is your _teammate, _whose life you have saved and he has saved your life in turn." Kakashi's calm stare intensified. "Are you really willing to harm or even _kill _him just to prove to yourself that you are the stronger one?"

The dark-haired boy averted his eyes for a moment, scowling uncertainly at the tree branch.

"I'm telling you again: give up on revenge. You will gain nothing and lose everything if you keep seeking it so blindly."

But Sasuke snapped his head up again and glared back, refusing to accept reason, refusing to look past his goal and simply refusing to _listen_.

_(_—_Who was the real childish one in Team Seven? ...Kakashi suddenly wondered if _Naruto_ was perhaps the most mature of the three, where it mattered._

_Where it truly mattered.)_

"What the hell do _you_ know?" The boy yelled, hate etched into his features. "Don't talk to me like you understand!"

"Calm down," Kakashi replied, sombre.

Sasuke suddenly sneered, a mad glint in his eyes. "What if I were to... _Kill the person you love most?"_ He smirked and continued in a vicious hiss, "Then... how far would you _stray_ from what you've just said? I can make you feel the pain... And then you would understand... my _hatred."_

_'He's becoming more and more like Itachi – and Orochimaru,'_ Kakashi suddenly realised, then immediately squashed the thought. _'No. Not yet, he's still young and he doesn't... doesn't _see_ what really matters. But... I have to do something about this...'_

"Hmm... that'd work, I'm sure," he noted blandly. "But not for me. Because you see, no such person exists."

Sasuke glared again, furious.

"All of them..." Kakashi smiled a very blithe smile, eye closing into a curve.

"...have already been killed."

* * *

Naruto's hand gripped the bark tightly. He had barely managed to hide his sharp intake of breath, but to his relief no one had noticed him.

_'How...?'_ He shook, just a little, pressing his shoulder against the tree he was hiding behind._ 'How can you say that so calmly with your usual smile, sensei? Just – just how many deaths have you suffered? You've never told anyone, have you, Kakashi-sensei...'_

He could not tear his eyes away, could not because in that one moment Hatake Kakashi left his carefully-hidden emotions vulnerable, he _felt_ the pain and sorrow.

It made him feel stupidstupidstupidstupid because it was just plain embarrassing and silly to be so sentimental—

_And it made his heart **hurt**, dammit._

* * *

That revelation seemed to have shaken the stubborn Uchiha a little and Kakashi felt faintly satisfied, even though his jaw _hurt_ from the amount of force he used to clench it shut, and keep himself under control.

"I've lived in a long and hard era," He told the boy, maintaining a calm, level stare. "I do understand how terrible true pain and loss are."

"Well!" his tone was forcibly cheerful. "We aren't the lucky ones, that's for sure... but we aren't the worst off, either." Sasuke looked rather bewildered.

"Both you and I have found precious companions, hmm?" Kakashi smiled briefly to himself, and the choked feeling in his throat relented, allowing himself to relax a little.

"..." Sasuke frowned, still sullen.

"You should understand, from your own loss... Chidori is a power that was given to you because you found things that are important. I taught it to you so you could protect your comrades. That power is not something to be used for revenge, or against your friends," He insisted, because it was _more_ important than Sasuke would ever know.

"I'm sure you yourself do know what it should be used for." And from the frustrated half-snarl he gave as he clenched his fists, the boy did know.

Kakashi released the wire, and added shortly, "Think hard on whether you can or cannot hold true to what I've said."

He left.

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**Finally an update, yeah? =wry= This chapter has been through a lot of re-structuring and editing and re-editing and all that crazy stuff, and I hope you liked it. ^^**

**School's starting in Jan, and I still have homework left... Next year's going to be absolute hell. Here's hoping I survive it. XD**

**Thanks for reading! (:**

**~rakku**


	5. The Second Promise

**Updated Summary:  
_"It's the promise of a lifetime! To me and to you and to Kakashi-sensei." But now, Kakashi watches in despair and horror as blood stains the water a deep, unending crimson. "To abandon one's duty is not courageous. Beneath the courageous, there is noth—"_**

**AN: Why yes it's an update. ^^;;**

**Chapter 5: The Second Promise**

* * *

The wind was surprisingly cold for that time of the year. He pulled down the folded sleeves of his orange jacket and crossed his arms, stuffing his fingers into the crook of each arm to keep them warm.

He had no idea why he was just standing there.

Perhaps he was waiting.

...

But stupid Kakashi-sensei could move damn _fast_ when he wanted to so he was probably long gone.

...

Although stupid Kakashi-sensei was also often very late, so there was a chance he'd pass by.

He had no exact idea why he was waiting, but he still did.

* * *

Kakashi stopped at the village gates.

"Naruto?"

"Uh, hi." Naruto stepped out of the shadows, smiling sheepishly.

Kakashi looked him over with a concerned grey eye. "You alright?"

"I guess," he gave a half-shrug. "You?"

"Mission."

"That kinda really sucks."

A small laugh. "Yeah. I'm awfully late, actually... even though it's a solo mission." He gave a shrug of his own. "At least it's short."

Naruto looked him up and down and up again with narrowed eyes. "They're sending you on a mission _this_ soon?"

"Can't be helped, not when the village is still recovering and manpower's been cut almost by half." He slouched slightly, a hand in his pocket. "The downside of being one of the elite jounin, I suppose."

"You still need rest," Naruto frowned.

Kakashi smiled reassuringly. "Maa, I'll survive."

The next sentence was spoken very, very softly. _"You better do..."_

He glanced at the boy again, faintly surprised. "What is it?"

"...Nothing."

A brief pause.

"You never did tell me why you threw a kunai at _yourself_, you know," Kakashi remarked suddenly.

Naruto ducked his head and scruffed his toe against the earth. "Last thing he'd expect. If I aimed for him the other guy'd just catch it anyway." He shot the man a stubborn, defiant look, then crossed his arms and stared fiercely at the ground. "And it worked, didn't it?" The boy muttered.

Kakashi drew in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. "Just. Don't do that a—"

"—I know," he interrupted hurriedly. "...Sorry."

Kakashi felt the tension in his shoulders, which he had not even realised, loosen a little.

"Well, I guess I should head out now." He took a step forward, paused, and added, "Ah – thought you'd like to know that I talked to Sasuke earlier."

Naruto slanted a glance at him. "Oh. Um, how'd it go?" _(Is he... a threat?)_

Kakashi sighed. "I don't know if he'll listen, so just... be on your guard." _(...Yes.)_

_Dammit._

A hand tapped his arm lightly, and he half-turned.

"Hmm?"

"Stay safe, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto muttered, turning an embarrassed pink. "Take care of yourself."

He smiled again, ruffling the boy's blond hair. "Of course I will. And look after _your_self, too."

Naruto nodded, Kakashi's hand slipping off his head to pat his shoulder lightly.

"Yeah, I'll do that. See you."

He watched the silver almost-shadow leap away until it finally disappeared from sight, before finally turning and heading back to his apartment.

He stared absent-mindedly at his ceiling for a long, long time before finally drifting into slumber.

_It's been a long day._

* * *

Naruto awoke to a sharp knocking on his door.

"Shikamaru? Wuzzup?" He blinked, still bleary.

...

"He _WHAAAAAAAAT?"_

The other boy winced at the volume.

"Gimme a sec, I'll be changed and ready in no time!" Naruto dashed to the bathroom, nightcap and several expletives flying haphazardly into the air.

A moment later, the two boys ran down the streets, both grim-faced.

"So, who else will be coming with us? Shouldn't there be chuunin and jounin if we're gonna run into enemy shinobi?"

"Nope," Shikamaru grumbled. "Hokage-sama said I can only take genin for this mission. The village's forces are spread way too thin, and no upper-ranks can be spared."

Naruto groaned. "Crap. So we'll just have to make do with what we have, then. And Kakashi-sensei's out on a mission too..."

"Troublesome," the other boy agreed.

"D'ya think there are any trackers available to help? I can track, kinda maybe a little, but I'm out of prac and I haven't actually been professionally trained..."

"Hope we'll be lucky enough to get Shino or Kiba to come along."

"'Kay."

* * *

He grit his teeth, staring grimly down the road which would lead further and further away from Konoha's green gates.

Frustration and confusion grated on his nerves like a cheese-grater on flesh– which _hurt,_ dammit. He kept reminding himself that _this was a mission,_ a freaking important one, so he and to stay calm and _not screw up_ _something_ by being stupid.

Not again. Not like last time.

Naruto shifted his attention to Shikamaru as he started explaining their team formation – Kiba and Akamaru first, followed by the chuunin himself, then Naruto, Chouji, and Neji right at the back.

"I don't like Sasuke at all," Shikamaru shrugged as he brought their briefing to a close. "And I don't really care about him either. But he is a fellow shinobi of Konoha – a _comrade,_ and it's our mission to retrieve him." He stared at all of them intently. "That's why we will put our lives on the line for this, because it's the way of Konoha!"

Naruto nodded, rather surprised.

_I guess even a lazy guy like him puts in effort for things like this, huh. 'Cause that's how we Konoha-nin view duty._

His brow furrowed, and he stared pensively at the ground.

_I wonder, though... just what does duty really mean?_

* * *

To abandon one's duty is not courageous. Beneath the courageous, there is nothing.

_—Hatake Kakashi, quoting the words of Namikaze Minato._

* * *

_I think... my duty is..._

* * *

"Sakura-chan? What're you doing here?"

"Please, Naruto... Please bring Sasuke-kun back to Konoha!"

Naruto frowned, but remained silent as he thought things over carefully, fiddling with the knot of his hitai-ate behind his neck.

_'I don't like it any more than Sakura, but... there's always the possibility he left willingly and _doesn't_ want to come back. That'd make him... a traitor. A missing-nin.'_

_Like Orochimaru._

Sakura stared imploringly at him, desperate and tearful. He winced at the pleading in her pale green eyes.

_'Sasuke is my friend – or at least I _thought_ he was – but... He's... not the only thing that's important,' _he realised slowly. His eyes drifted to the Hokage Monument. _'Not the most important.'_

"Sakura."

The other four Genin watched him curiously as he finally came to a decision.

"I promise... that I will fulfil my duty as a shinobi of Konoha..."

She started in surprise. That was not the response she had expected from the blond, whose blue eyes were unusually serious.

"...and also as a member of Team Seven."

He turned to leave, re-tying his hitai-ate on his forehead.

"And as you know, I don't go back on my word."

Maybe she understood, just a little.

"Thank you, Naruto..."

He half-turned to give her one last smile before they set off.

"It's the promise of a lifetime! To you and to me and to Kakashi-sensei."

—If it was his mission to capture and retrieve a runaway Konoha-nin, he would do so. If Sasuke was willing to return, he would bring his friend back home. If Sasuke had no wish to go back but Sakura wanted him to, he would drag the boy back as a favour for a teammate.

_And if Kakashi did not wish to lose another person that was important to him... he would get that stupid bastard back to Konoha, no matter what._

Because it was his duty. To Konoha and the Hokage, to Kakashi and Sakura and even Sasuke – and, of course, to himself as well.

* * *

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**And so, he makes his second promise. A promise to Sakura, to himself, and even to Kakashi because he has realised what really matters, and what his _duty_ actually is.**

**Naruto's concept of _duty_ is something very, very unique indeed.**

**Hope you liked it? Do leave a review, thanks! (: Sorry for the rather long wait! ^^;;**

**~rakku(:**


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